coolant

[tool_man]

Just wondering if I could use propylene glycol,(non toxic ant-freeze)as a coolant for machining and grinding.At one time I could buy water soluble oil locally.I really liked it.It never discolored or rusted my machine.I went to the local bulk plant Monday and they looked at me like I was from another planet when I asked for water soluble oil.Finally the guy looked it up and found they sell Mobilmet S-122 but,they had none in stock and there would be a 3-4 week lead time.Just looking for an alternative that I can obtain locally.Any advice would be nice.

[tobyaxis]

Just wondering if I could use propylene glycol,(non toxic ant-freeze)as a coolant for machining and grinding.

This might not be a very good idea. Non-Toxic or not, this could be unhealthy to say the least.

Have you tried Enco or MSC for water sol??
http://www.use-enco.com/CGI/INSRHM?DCMP=EMC-1750371
http://www1.mscdirect.com/cgi/nnsrhm?KNC-T7L391316886

[tool_man]

The reason I brought this up is,I worked at a cheese plant where we had a 300 gallon tank of propylene glycol,cooled to -40f.It was pumped to 2 heat exchangers that cooled the cheese.The glycol circulated through an outer jacket while the cheese was fed through the center with an auger.The o-rings were changed when needed.I was told if there was a minor leak into the cheese it would be no problem since Propylene Glycol is not toxic.

[Nastyzen]

Here we go again

[Bubba]

It is commonly used as a sweetener in many food products. (food grade of course). I am not sure how it will react over time. You know kind of like a sugar syrup??? Something to think about.

[ImanCarrot]

Isn't that stuff toxic to cats and dogs? Just a thought if you've got a pooch wandering about the shop...

Veterinary data indicates that propylene glycol is toxic to 50% of dogs at doses of 9mL/kg, although the figure is higher for most laboratory animals (LD50 at levels of 20mL/kg).

[coolantman]

Tool_Man,

Propylene Glycol would more than likely not give you as good lubricity as the S-1222. There is also no rust protection in the glycol and as your comment stated, you like the fact that the S-1222 did not rust your machine.

I wonder why your supplier has you waiting a month for the product?

I can have you a good water soluble cutting oil depending on your location within a few days.

Hope you get things worked out.

-Coolantman

Jonathan Ballard
EnviroServe Chemicals, Inc.
(910) 892-1791
www.enviroservechemicals.com

[tool_man]

Isn't that stuff toxic to cats and dogs? Just a thought if you've got a pooch wandering about the shop...

I didn't know that about the stuff being toxic to dogs.That rules out that idea.Don't want to kill my little buddy.